Bookshelf plans with shelf sag and tipping checks
Choose the width, height, number of shelves and material, and Woodworker shows whether the shelves will sag under books and whether the bookcase needs fixing to the wall.
Open the bookshelf designerFree · no sign-up · works in your browser
How the design works
Sides with fixed shelves, an optional back panel and a plinth, split into bays when it’s wide.
Starts at 800 mm wide, 1.8 m high and 300 mm deep (32 × 72 × 12 in in US sizes). Change any size and everything else follows.
What Woodworker checks
- Each shelf sagging over time under books (creep)
- Tipping forward, and whether it should be fixed to the wall
- Racking without a back panel
When something isn’t strong or stable enough, it says why and offers a fix you can apply in one click, like a bigger section, an extra brace or a different joint.
What you can change
- Width, height and depth
- Number of shelves and bays
- Plywood, MDF or solid wood, and its thickness
- Back panel and plinth
- Load on each shelf (Advanced)
What you get
- A cut list of every part, with sizes, wood and how many
- A shopping list of timber lengths or sheets, screws, bolts and hardware, with rough costs
- Assembly steps in build order, with the joints and fixings for each step
- Dimensioned front, side and top drawings, and a printable workshop sheet (PDF)
Tips
- MDF shelves sag much more than plywood or solid wood of the same thickness: the checks show the difference.
- Tall bookcases should be fixed to the wall, especially with children around.
Questions
- Can I make a TV stand?
- Yes, Woodworker has a TV stand template too, with a top checked for the weight of a TV.
- Is it really free?
- Yes. Woodworker is free, with no ads and no account. Designs are saved in your browser and never uploaded.
- How accurate are the checks?
- They use Eurocode 5 methods and common furniture test loads, as a guide for home-made projects, not certified engineering. Ask an engineer about anything large or anything people could be hurt by if it failed.
